Three leading NHS England board members have made the decision to stand down at the end of March.

Chief financial officer Julian Kelly took up his role within NHS England in 2019, after being director general of public spending and finance at the Treasury and director general nuclear at the Ministry of Defence. During his tenure at NHS England, he drove significant productivity improvements following the pandemic, with acute productivity now increasing by 2.4 per cent each year, as well as delivering major efficiencies.

Emily Lawson, NHS chief operating officer, joined the NHS in 2017, and went on to lead a successful NHS Covid-19 vaccination programme which saved thousands of lives. She led Number 10’s Delivery Unit before turning in October 2021 to lead the booster vaccine rollout before taking up the position of NHS chief operating officer.

Chief delivery officer and national director for vaccination and screening Steve Russell joined the NHS in 2022 to lead the vaccination programmes. His achievements include rolling out the first ever jab against RSV, as well as spearheading work to modernise screening programmes and recover uptake. Before joining NHS England, Steve was chief executive at a Trust in Harrogate, and NHS Improvement’s regional director in London.

Amanda Pritchard, NHS chief executive said: “It has been a privilege to work alongside Julian, Steve and Emily — they have made a huge contribution to the NHS and the country as a whole and have been an enormous source of support for me personally.

“There is no doubt the last few years have been the most difficult in NHS history, and the continued improvements to health service performance and productivity would have been possible without their invaluable experience, skill and dedication.

“Not only have they expertly guided the NHS through the shock of and response to the pandemic — but they have also helped turned the corner in the recovery period.

“While now is the right moment for them to move on, I know they will be missed by their colleagues — not only for their professional brilliance, but their commitment to delivering the best for patients. I want to thank them all for their enormous contribution and wish them the very best in the future.”

The size of NHS England is about to be dramatically reduced as part of a movement to ensure that taxpayer’s money is used most effectively.